Toy motion-picture machine.



W. W. BLAGKMAN.

TOY MOTION PICTURE MACHINE.

APPLIOATIUN FILED I'EB.23, 1912.

Patented Mar. 9, 1915.

2 SHBETSSHEET 1 w. w. BLACKMAN.

TOY MOTION PICTURE MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED 2313.23, 1912.

1,131,033. Patented Mar. 9, 1915.

2 SHEETS-SHBBT 2.

7 IN VEN TOR Vfalta' IILBIaclr/a'm.

ATTORNEY UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WALTER w. BLACKMAN, OF BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA.

TOY MOTION-PICTURE MACHINE.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, VVALTER 7. BLACK- plays from a strip of printed reproductions of scenes which successively displayed in the proper manner, portray movement.

My object is to produce'a very small and inexpensive device which may be regarded as a toy and by means ofwhich a child even can so cause the display strip to be moved as to produce motionpictures. Preferably the display strip is endless and is moved with a rapid intermittent movement past a display opening, a novel friction means being utilized to act on the strip so that responsive to variations in the speed of oper-' ation of the friction drive the strip will tend to adjust its picture displays relatively to the sight opening to maintain a correct sight for the pictures. Y

A further object is to adapt such an apparatus especially for use with an endless opaque strip upon which correlated pictures are placed or printed by any suitable process or means, and I claim such an endless band in combination with my novel apparatus peculiarly designed to display same.

A further object of my invention is to produce a display apparatus in which the driving mechanism is contained in a casing over the exterior of which the feed strip is adapted to be passed, the feed mechanism for the strip projecting from the casing which has a cover plate with a sight opening beneath which the picture strip'passes. This ar-- rangement makes it unnecessary to open up the apparatus to insert or remove the strip which may be of any length as only the small portion under the display opening is controlled by the machine. a

My invention further comprises the details of construction and arrangements of parts hereinafter more specifically-described and claimed, reference being had to theaccompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is'a front elevation, and Fig. 2 is a side elevation partly broken away of v the preferred embodiment of my invention.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Mar, 9, 1915. Application filed February 23, 1912. Serial No. 679,254;

Fig. 3 is a front elevation with the cover open and a guide plate broken away to show the operating mechanism in end elevation. Fig. 4 is a detail view of an intermittent drive for the friction roll. Fig. 5 is a front elevation of a modification of my invention. Fig. 6 is an end elevation of Fig. 5, and Fig. 7.is' a rear elevation of Fig. 5 with the cats ing partly broken away. I V Similar reference numerals refer to similar parts throughout the drawings.

,The stand utilized to support theoperating mechanism may be of varied constructron, that shown in Fig. 1 comprising a.

stamped metal frame having side walls 1 terminating in bottom rolled edges 2 and connected by an integral front plate 3 from which guide strips 4 are stamped out and The side walls are triangular in shape which leaves the front wall 3 sloping toward its top portion which is cut away to expose the .journaled in the side walls of the casingv and provided at its opposite end, which projects beyond the casing, with a fiy-wheel 12. The roll 6 has fixedly connected to it a five pointed gear wheel 13 having equi-distantly spaced radial slots 14 and between which are left segments having concave peripheral edges 15. I fix on countershaft 11 a driving element for the wheel 13 comprising a cam shaped plate 16 carrying a pin-17 and a curved shoulder 18 which is concentric with the shaft 11 and adapted to make a close sliding fit with the concaveedges 15 -sucbent up to guide the picture display strip 5.

cessively prior to the time the pin 17 passes out of the slots 14 to thereby hold the gear wheel against any inertia movements after it is advanced by the pins. The curved shoulder 18 insures the gear receiving an intermittent movement with timed periods of complete rest.

As best results are obtained by having the strip 5 endless in character, 1 prefer to' ar range the friction devices, which cooperate with the feed roll 6, so as to readily permit such an endless strip to be inserted in the machine. To this end the front cover 19 is p are such that the higher the speed hingedat 20 to thefront edge of one of the side walls and is provided with a display opening 21 preferably formed by stampin and bending out the metal tongues 22 an 23. .The plate is cut away near its upper end to leave a flexible tongue 24 which has end flaps 25 that are bent inwardly at right angles to form bearings for-a pressure roll 26, while the free end of the tongue is bent upwardly at 27. The cover extends above the side walls and terminates in an upright top'por'tion 28 adapted to receive a name plate or advertising matter The cover 19 is adapted to swing down over the guide plate 3 for the picture strip and is provided with a spring catch 29 which is notched at 30 to spring over and catch on a projection (not shown) on a side plate. To the rear edges of the side walls 1, I hinge a plate 31 which has journaled therein afriction roll 32 and is provided with a catch 33, similar to 29 to lock the roller 32 in frictional engagement with the feed roll 6.

To insert the picture strip, the catches 29 and 33 are disengaged and plates 19 and 31 are opened outwardly to expose the feed roll 6 over which the strip 5 can then be dropped and held in engagement therewith by moving the parts 19 and 31 to their closed position, when rollers 26 and 32 will press the strip againstroll 6. Before the cover 19 is closed, the strip is moved to bring one of the pictures in proper position under the sight opening 21. The bottom edge of guide wall 3 is curved under at 34 to cause the paper to feed at an acute angle around said curved edge before passing up to the feed rolls.

In practice, after the picture strip has been adjusted, by turning crank 8 the pictures will be successively brought into display position under opening 21 and will be held against lateral displacement by the guides 4. The intermittent movement, derived from the driving mechanism, will move the pictures so as to give the moving picture effect. In the event the pictures tend to rise above or fall below the sight opening while the apparatus is being operated, I have found that this may be provided against by slightly varying the speed of operation, as the arrangement of paiifs t e greater the frictional drag of the strip in rounding the edge 34 which tends to lower the pictures relatively to the sight opening, and the slower the speed the less the drag about 34 which tends to move the pictures above the sight opening. This peculiar and novel feature provides for a compensatory adjustment of the strip in a practical and efl'ective manner and is dependent on pr0- "iding a friction feed and a frictional resistance which tends to retard the feed of the strip but I do not regard any particular character of frictional means as essential but prefer it to hold the strip taut in passing under the sight opening.

In Figs. 5 to 7, I have illustrated a more simple embodiment of my invention wherein I provide a handle 36 for supporting the apparatus which comprises a metal drum formed by end plates 37 and 38 joined by a curved guide or rim surface 39. The plate 37 is attached rigidly to handle 36 and a cupped metal cover 40 is attached to theplate 38 and incloses the roll operating mechanism. A crank 41 is journaled in the cover 40 and handle 36 and has fixed on it a wheel 42, provided with four equi-distantly spaced pins 43. A six pointed star wheel 44 is fixed on an end of a shaft 45 which projects through and is journaled in plates 37 and 38 and has fixed on it between said plates a feed roll 46 grooved at its center and provided about each end with an elastic band 47 or like friction means. The ends of the roll project without the drum through slots 48 cut in a flattened portion 49 in the rim surface 39, which is thus left with a central tongue portion disposed over the groove in roll 46, thus making the rim continuous. A tongue 51 is cut and bent outwardly from the plate 38 and is adapted to press against the star wheel to frictionally arrest the latter. after each intermittent advance thereof caused by the engagement of the pins 43 on Wheel 42 with the teeth of the star wheel 44. The cover plate 52 is arcuate shaped and provided with a flange 53 which is hinged to a pin 54 disposed in a line above achord joining the ends of the arcuate cover. The cover is 'pro-,

vided with a spring flap catch 55 on its glass .57 which is mounted in 'a suitable holder- 58 surrounding the sight opening. The rear end of the cover, which extends beyond and over feed roll 46, has pivotally mounted therein a friction roll 59 and is made flexible so that the tension of the roll on roll 46 can be readily adjusted. Inthis apparatus the cover 52 is raised and thepicture strip 5 slipped under it and adjusted, after which the cover is forced down and the curved surfaces of the rim 39 and cover 52 act as a frictional retarding means which hold the strip taut wl ile the roller 59 holds it .in engagement with the intermittently actuated feed roll 46 so'that it. is moved in the desired manner to give the moving picture efi'ect.

I do not claim in this application the frame construction adapted to be held in the hand during. operation, nor'the details of construction which distinguish the disclosure in Figs. 5 and 6 from the other figures of the case, as the more important of these details form the subject matter of separate applications Ser. Nos. 6696 and 6697, filed by me on the 8th day of February, 1915 for improvements in toy motion picture machines. Nor do I claim in this application the endless picture strip which forms the subject matter of an application Ser. No. 6698, for opaque picture strips for motion picture machines and process for producing same filed by me on February 8th, 1915.

I do not desire to be limited to any special mechanism for producing the intermittent movement of the feed roll, nor to any s ecific character of the drum or support or the picture strip.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a display apparatus for moving pictures, a support and external guide for the display strip, a guide plate having a display opening over said guide, a friction feed roll, two means which cooperate therewith, one to press the strip against the roll and the other tending to frictionally retard the strip, and means to intermittently turn the feed roll.

2. In an apparatus for producing moving pictures, a friction feed roll, means to intermittently rotate same, a flexible display strip which is engaged by said roll, and means on each side of the roll to frictionally engage said strip and hold it against said roll, and a cover having a display opening under which said strip is adapted to be intermittently moved.

3. In an apparatus for displaying a series of correlated pictures displayed on a flexible strip, a guide over which thestrip is adapted to slide, a guide plate which holds the.

strip against said guide and has a sight opening, a friction feed roll for said strip, a presser roll which engages the feed roll on the side farthest from said guide plate, and meansto give said rolls an intermittent movement, substantially as described.

4. In a display apparatus for producing moving pictures, the combination with an endless flexible opaque strip of pictures, a mechanism to display same comprising a frame having a slideway for the strip, a

cover having a sight opening over said slideway, and an intermittently operable feed 'mechanism which engages and moves the strip. I 5. In an apparatus of the character described, a metallic support having a guide surface, a cover over said surface having a sight opening, a friction roll projecting above said surface, and frictional means disposed on both sides of said roll and adapted. to engage and hold a picture strip pressed against said roll, for the purposes described.

6. In an apparatus of the character described, a guide for the paper strip, a hinged cover having a sight openlng, a friction roll mounted in a flexible portion of said cover, and an intermittently operable feed roll arranged to receive a picture strip from said guide and to cooperate with said friction roll in feeding the paper strip intermittently, as and for the purposes described.

7. In an apparatus of the character de-' scribed, a metal frame having an inclined guide face, a feed roll journaled at the top of the frame, a cover having a sight opening hinged to the frame and adapted to fold down over said guide face, friction rolls carried by the frame and disposed on each side of the feed roll, and mechanism to intermittently actuate the feed roll, substantially as described.

8. In an apparatus of the character described, a guide plate for a flexible picture strip having a curved face about which said strip is ada ted to be drawn, a cover over said guide ace having a sight opening, a frictional feed roll adapted to draw the strip of paper around said curved face and between the guide plate and cover, means to guide the picture strip over and hold it in frictional engagement with sai'dffeed roll, and means to intermittently actuate the feed roll, substantially as described.

9. In a means tures, a slideway for the picture strip, a cover plate over said way provided with a sight opening, means to intermittently feed said stripby frictional engagement therewith, and means tending to retard the feed of the strip under said opening.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

WALTER W. BLACKMAN.

Witnesses:

NOMIE WELSH, R. D. JOHNSTON, Jr.

for producing moving pic-- 

